Let’s Make Some Noise, vintage movie style: celebrating the films of yesterday and the day before
By: Kevin Vickery
Welcome back to the latest feature of my column where I will dive into feature films 50, 40, 30, 20 and maybe even sometimes 10 years ago. In case you missed last month’s edition, I’ll remind you that each month I’ll chose a common theme and then highlight and discuss movies of those specific years.
This concept occurred to me when I recently had to swallow my pride realizing that 1996 was 30 years ago and that of course means that my beloved 1980s (particularly 1986) was 40 years in the past. I won’t mention how long ago that makes 1976 but you get the idea.
Thinking back upon all of the great music, fashion trends, cars, and especially movies from those good old days and how things have changed within pop-culture over my lifetime, I decided to add this segment as a reoccurring feature for this year. So, we’ll see how it goes and if my boss (that’s you, the readers) enjoy it, then I’ll keep it going.
So, let’s get this party started by rolling back the colander 40 years to feature this classic from 1986.
“Hoosiers”: 1986 Rated PG
This sports drama film, written by Angelo Pizzo and directed by David Anspaugh tells the story of a small-town Indiana high school basketball team and its journey to the state championship finals. As any good Hoosier knows, It is inspired in part by the Milan High School team who won the 1952 state championship against powerhouse, Muncie Central High School.
In the film, Milan is replaced by the fictitious town of Hickory, Indiana as it follows the journey of Coach Norman Dale (Gene Hackman) as he leads the Huskers to the championship title against all odds.
Co-star, Dennis Hopper, earned an Academy Award nomination for his role as Wilbur “Shooter” Flatch, the basketball-loving town drunk and father of the team’s Everett Flatch (David Neidorf).
In 2001, “Hoosiers” was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”
New Richmond, Indiana served as the fictional town of Hickory and most of the film’s location shots in and around the community were taken there. In addition, a schoolhouse in Nineveh, Indiana was used for the majority of the classroom scenes and many other shots throughout the film.
The home court of Hickory is located in Knightstown, Indiana and is now known as the “Hoosier Gym.” Hinkle Fieldhouse, located on the campus of Butler University in Indianapolis was used for the final scenes depicting the state championship game.
“Hoosiers” is a must watch for anyone from Indiana and any basketball fan in general. There are still Hoosiers of a certain age around who remember that historic championship game. Back in 2015, when my family’s business was awarded the Business of the Year Award, I was invited to a dinner and award ceremony that featured Bobby Plump as a speaker for the event.
Plump was on that real-life Milan team winning the championship in 1954. He went on to play basketball at Butler University, twice earning their MVP award and then professionally for the Philips 66ers in the National Industrial Basketball League. He was voted Indiana’s Mr. Basketball in 1954 and is a member of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame. Plump’s last shot in the 1954 IHSAS State championship game was depicted exactly where Jimmy Chitwood (Maris Vilainis) took the shot for Hickory in the film.
Hearing Bobby Plump recount the true story of the events that took place in the “Hoosiers” film version was an interesting and entertaining experience and I would highly recommend giving the movie a re-watch, especially if it’s been a while since you’ve watched it. It is currently available to stream for free on tubi, Roku, Pluto TV, or you could always dust off that old VHS copy you have in a box somewhere.
“Space Jam”: 1996 Rated PG
Turning 30 in 2026, this live-action animated sports comedy film directed by Joe Pytka features two of my favorite things; Bugs Bunny and the cast of “Looney Tunes”characters along with basketball’s GOAT, Michael Jordan (I said what I said – sorry LeBron) in the first film produced by Warner Bros. Feature Animation. In addition to Jordan as himself; the live-action cast also includes Wayne Knight and Theresa Randle while Billy West and Danny DeVito headline the voice cast.
“Space Jam” follows Jordan as he is brought out of retirement by the “Looney Tunes”characters to help them win a basketball game in outer space against invading aliens intent on enslaving them as amusement park attractions.
The alien team steals the talents of real life NBA stars, Charles Barkley, Larry Johnson, Patrick Ewing, Muggsy Bogues, and Shawn Bradley forming the “Monstars” in an attempt to defeat Jordan and the Tunes but ultimately their efforts are thwarted by the cartoon antics of Bugs and company.
There are also some good cameo scenes with Larry Bird and Bill Murray as Jordan’s golf buddies and Murray even makes his way into the action for a game winning assist to Jordan when the team is short by one player. Eventually, Jordan returns to Earth, restores the stolen abilities of the other NBA players who convince him to quit baseball and return to the NBA.
There was a sequel, “Space Jam: A New Legacy” released in 2021 starring LeBron James which received generally negative reviews and failed to match the commercial success of the first film which grossed over $250.2 million at the box office.
I took my kids to see the sequel in the theater when they were ten and six years old and they enjoyed it but in writing this piece, I’m realizing that I need to show them the original which is available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, and Google Play Movies & TV.
“Glory Road”: 2006 Rated PG
Celebrating its 20th birthday this year is this sports drama film set 60 years ago in 1966, which is directed by James Gartner, and based on a true story surrounding the events leading to the 1966 NCAA University Division Basketball Championship. Coach Don Haskins (Josh Lucas), head coach of Texas Western College lead a team with an all-black starting lineup, for the first time in NCAA history. “Glory Road” explores racism, and discrimination in student athletics. Supporting actors Derek Luke as star player Bobby Joe Hill and Jon Voight as University of Kentucky’s Wildcats coach Adolph Rupp also star in principal roles.
“Glory Road” gives us the grim reminder of the inequalities and racial struggles suffered by college athletes during the civil rights movement through the late 1960s. In the film members of the Texas Western Miners team are subjected to taunting and racial slurs from opposing team’s fans as well as vandalism of their hotel rooms when traveling and being physically assaulted in the restroom of a public restaurant.
Coach Haskins is first determined to force the black players in to a fundamental style, typical of the time but then realizes that letting the players adapt more of their street style moves and approach to the game would give the players more freedom and comfortability, allowing them to excel on the court and deliver a one loss season, leading into the national championship.
This choice further angers his white opposition and leads to death threats against he and his family. Ultimately all the turmoil fuels his team as they face the larger and well seasoned University of Kentucky in the final game. That team featured players Pat Riley, Louie Dampier, and Tommy Kron who all went on to play professionally in either the ABA or the NBA after graduation.
It’s safe to say that the impact of Texas Western’s NCAA championship victory forever changed the course of player recruiting by colleges nationwide. “Glory Road” ends with the update of what the players went on to accomplish after college graduation. Bobby Joe Hill, David Latin, and NevilShedall went on to play professional basketball in the ABA or NBA while others became key members of the El Paso community serving rolls as educators, police investigators, and motivational speakers.
I believe “Glory Road” was an excellent film rooted in historical significance relevant to college athletics and would highly recommend watching it if you’ve never seen it. It is currently streaming for free on Disney Plus.
That puts the wraps on this month’s salute to the films of yesterday and the day before. Given that the high-school basketball sectional tournament is upon us and the NCAA’s March Madness is right around the corner, the theme for this edition seems obvious, right? If you guessed anything other than basketball, you might want to go back and give it another read.
For facts about “Hoosiers” and the making of the film go to http://hoosiersarchive.com and http://thehoosiergym.com
For more information about Space Jam visit the official website at http://spacejam.com
You can learn more about “Glory Road” at http://movies.disney.com/glory-road
Make Some Noise 